Downloading abuse can include a violation of the image rights of the creator or right's holder. Examples of imagery infringement are:
• Use of whole or part of an image without permission
• Use beyond the scope of a license or permission
• Adapting an image without permission
• Asking another photographer to identically recreate it
The Copyright act gives the copyright owner the exclusive right to reproduce or modify their work, and to exclude others from doing so. Copying includes copying or saving their image to your hard drive, or copying to other mediums, like scanning a photo from a book and turning it into a JPEG file.
The copyright owner can sue people who take their picture for the owner's lost profit, profits, profit the infringer made, statutory damages (up to $10,000 and as much as $50,000 for willful infringement), and attorney's fees and costs.
Downloading images that you don't own is dangerous and can be illegal.
Citations
Works, Artistic. "Using Images - What You Need to Know." Stock Image Copyright Law Quick Guide | Licensing Photos, Graphics Web Images. Web. 11 Jan. 2011. http://www.stockphotorights.com/faq/.
Downloading Images from the Internet
Downloading abuse can include a violation of the image rights of the creator or right's holder. Examples of imagery infringement are:
• Use of whole or part of an image without permission
• Use beyond the scope of a license or permission
• Adapting an image without permission
• Asking another photographer to identically recreate it
The Copyright act gives the copyright owner the exclusive right to reproduce or modify their work, and to exclude others from doing so. Copying includes copying or saving their image to your hard drive, or copying to other mediums, like scanning a photo from a book and turning it into a JPEG file.
he image
Since October 31, 1988, works no longer need a copyright notice to have copyright protection. This means any image you find on a web page may be copyrighted.The traditional notice, such as "Copyright 1989 XZV Co." or " ©1989 XZV Co." is no longer required. Most web site content has been created since 1988, so beware.
The copyright owner can sue people who take their picture for the owner's lost profit, profits, profit the infringer made, statutory damages (up to $10,000 and as much as $50,000 for willful infringement), and attorney's fees and costs.
To learn more about image downloads, click here.
Citations
Works, Artistic. "Using Images - What You Need to Know." Stock Image Copyright Law Quick Guide | Licensing Photos, Graphics Web Images. Web. 11 Jan. 2011. http://www.stockphotorights.com/faq/.
"Copyrightlaws.com » Legally Using Images." Copyrightlaws.com. 15 Mar. 2010. Web. 11 Jan. 2011. <http://www.copyrightlaws.com/us/legally-using-images/>.
"Downloading Images, JPEGs, GIFs or BMPs." Welcome to Public Domain Images - PDimages.com. Web. 11 Jan. 2011. <http://www.pdimages.com/law/19.htm>.
Rosa, Alessandra. You Can Click but You Can't Hide. Digital image. Web. 13 Jan. 2011. <http://alessandralosa.files.wordpress.com/2010/11/illegal_download.jpg